Bread & Jam 2025: The UK's Biggest Challenger Brand Festival

We're excited to say our legendary festival will be back on 15th and 16th July 2025* at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London. Since launching in 2016, the Bread & Jam Festival has grown to become the must-attend event of the year for hundreds of ambitious FMCG Challenger Brands.

*Please note these are tentative dates and are subject to change.

• Two day, in-person event held at the Business Design Centre
• You'll learn invaluable trade secrets from over 70+ hours of ground-breaking industry content
• Learn who those who have been there and done it - Previous speakers have included the likes of Tenzing, Love Corn, The Gym Kitchen, The Popcorn Shed, Karma Cola, Simply Roasted & more.
• Pitch to top UK retailers and secure a listing - Apply to pitch to 30+ retailers such as GAIL'S, Planet Organic, British Airways, BP, Co-op, Holland & Barrett, Ocado, Bidfood & more!
• Showcase your products and get-real time feedback from attendees in the Producers' Shop
• Meet 60+ industry experts in the Marketplace. They're specially curated for working with fast growth food & drink brands
• Network with 100s of like-minded, ambitious food & drink founders
• The Festival is THE place to build the connections you need to grow your business, and networking is built directly into the programme.
• Get feedback from a panel of retail buyers at the Tasting Panel.
• Get personalised advice on your branding, packaging and point of difference from industry experts at The Advice Bar - Meet The Experts

• Founders of emerging FMCG brands interested in accelerating the growth of their business
• Early-stage entrepreneurs who want to understand the opportunities in the FMCG world.
• Industry experts keen to give back to the industry and inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs
• Team members of fast growth challenger brands looking to up-skill and gather industry insights
• Investors looking for food and drink startups keen to secure their first round of funding
• Scaling FMCG brands keen to secure their next supermarket listing

Leaders Lectures: be inspired by the hottest thought leaders that have disrupted the industry on this stage.

Shoptalk: take part in lively panel discussions with successful food founders who have been there and done it, and ask your own questions in the Q&A.

Retail Buyers' Panels: hear straight from the horse's mouth and understand the latest opportunities in retail, as retail buyers share what they're really looking for and how to get listed

Masterclasses: the Masterclasses will arm you with the skills and knowledge you need in the three key areas of running a challenger business: sales, marketing and operations. Enhance your expertise in these comprehensive sessions. Whether you're a soloprenuer or a head of department with a growing brand, there will be something for you in these tiered topics.

Roundtables: get the latest know how from seasoned industry experts in an intimate, small-group setting. Engage in meaningful discussions, receive personalised advice and walk away with actionable strategies you can implement right away in your business.

If you're an industry expert or service provider that loves working with emerging food and drink brands, please reach out to us at [email protected] and we'll be able to take you through the opportunities for this year's festival and how you can get involved.

“I joined the very first Bread & Jam Festival 8 years ago and it’s amazing to see that it continues to bring together and inspire food & beverage brands today. The event is like no other - the networking opportunity and camaraderie it brings is absolutely invaluable for challenger brands. — Rushina Shah, Insane Grain

“The reputation of Bread & Jam has in the food & drink industry speaks for itself - a genuine must attend event for anyone working in this field.” — Ed Carstairs, GJE

“As a food startup, this was the best investment I made last year both financially and time-wise. From a personal point of view, it was incredibly inspiring and seriously useful to be in the same room as so many founders in the same boat.” — Andrew Walker, TeaRex

“I always find B&J invaluable, not just in terms of meeting and connecting with people and brands (both old and new) but also as a reminder to me of why we all do what we do.” — Zoe Berry, Buyer at GoPuff

“Thanks to Bread & Jam, we were able to get pitching slots with 2 national supermarkets before we had even launched our product . So grateful to Bread & Jam for being such spectacular facilitator." — Yogita Joshi, Gudness

“Bread & Jam Fest is THE absolute must-attended event if you plan to start a food or beverage brand or want to scale your existing business.” — Jürgen Ellensohn, Van Der Berg

“Thanks for putting on such an awesome event. The fact that we have a platform to tell these stories, only helps make the community stronger (and hopefully healthier). —Hugh Thomas, UGLY Drinks

“The first event of its kind, offering a comprehensive programme of talks workshops and networking, covering every aspect of how to start or build a food or drink business.” — The Grocer

Bread & Jam are the organisers of the UK's biggest food and drink founders' festival. This year's 2-day conference for emerging and scaling food and drink brands, will bring together entrepreneurs, innovators, investors, buyers, media and industry leaders.

There will also be opportunities to pitch your product to buyers from delis, foodhalls (Selfridges, Harrods, Fortnum & Masons), speciality retailers (Whole Foods, Planet Organic, Holland & Barrett), supermarkets (Ocado, Sainsbury's, Tesco, Co-op and more).

Bread & Jam also run a comprehensive programme of deep-dive Summits into specialist topics.

Bread & Jam was founded by Jason Gibb and Tara Mei. Passionate about giving emerging brands the opportunities and network to succeed, they held the first food founders' festival in October 2016 at the Institute of Directors.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, London, United Kingdom